Lost

Prologue

"Open the fucking door, you asshole!" Emma Hughes slammed her fist repeatedly on the wooden door in front of her.

The door creaked at the sheer force of Emma's blows, trying its best to hold up and conceal the owners inside. But the door was old and the hinges rusty, threatening to fall off with every time her fists hit the rough material.

The young girl — just a couple years out of college — had been banging on the door for a couple minutes now, not willing to rest until the person she wanted to see opened up and had a conversation with her. 

She had never been to this house before, not even in this neighborhood for it was one she was always warned to stay away from as a child. But Emma was on a mission to see him and she would not fail. She didn't care how rough this side of town was. 

Emma had grown up comfortably with two loving parents and and a sibling who is more-or-less got along with. She went to private school, didn't drink until she was 21, and wasn't big on cursing. But in the span of a couple weeks this man had managed to transform her into something she wasn't. But for all the things she isn't, she sure is determined and stubborn.   

"Motherfucker open the fuck up!" She continued to scream, holding out hope that maybe when he heard her voice he would come to the door.

But deep down, she knew he never really cared for her. He doesn't care about anyone.

"Hello?"

A boy around the age of ten opened the door. His black hair fell into his blue eyes as he wiped it away from his face and looked up at Emma, confused on why she was banging on his door in the middle of the afternoon. The kid's blue eyes pierced her brown ones, his face sweet as he was a young kid, but also harsh and stern, showing that he was going to protect his house.

Emma wondered for a second if she was at the wrong house. She didn't recall the man she wanted to see having any children or perhaps very young siblings. But then again, she didn't know much about this man at all.

Emma knew this was the right house, she had checked a million times.

"Hi?" Emma said awkwardly, bringing her fist down to show the kid that she really meant no harm and offering him a weak smile. "Is Tobias here?" She asked the boy, trying to peek over his head, but he closed the door a little so she could only see him once he noticed what she was doing, narrowing his eyes at the woman.

"My dad?" His nose scrunched up in confusion. "What the fuck do you want to see my dad for?" The kids voice hardened, not fully answering Emma's question.

What had this kid gone through to end up like that? She wondered, momentarily, but had no time to ponder on the boy's home situation when she was on a mission.

Emma was compassionate and most of the time looked out for others feelings so she didn't cause any harm towards then. But now, she continued to remind herself, she needed to look out for her and no one else. It wasn't selfish — it was life. No one was going to look out for her besides her! 

"You're Tobias's son?"

Throughout the short time Emma had known Tobias and fooled around with him — both of them using each other for different reasons. He had never said anything about a son. In her mind, people who have a child usually talk about them a decent amount because that's a huge factor in ones life. Her head tilted to the side as she pondered this subject, before she quickly realized her awkward position and straightened back up. He was also a pretty private person. She told herself as an excuse. 

"Ace." The boy responded, curtly.

"Well, Ace." She started using the kids name as it seemed to bother him when she didn't. "Is your father home? I really need to speak with him."